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Coles Slaw Almost everyone who visits Europe has Switzerland on their agenda Our group of four was no exception We took the early morning train out of Rome for Milano There we changed to a Swiss train bound for Zurich where through the good offices of American Express to Rome we had booked two rooms in a mediumpriced hotel This meant travelling through the Alps again just at dusk through some of the beautiful scenery in the Italian lake district before climbing Into the mountains From there on it was pitch black and we had no Idea what the Swiss countryside looked until we returned two days later to a small village called Andermatt high In the mountains It was the kind of dream village you see In the Swiss postcards Brown Swiss cattle roamed all over fenceless meadows The village had plenty of hostels and taverns and a large army base where the modern Swiss army trains its conscripts Every ablebodied Swiss male must serve his time in the armed forces It is not unusual to see young men at the railway stations carrying automatic rifles with Ihem on leave or on the way back to base It was a startling reminder that one way the Swiss have kept out of two world wars Is to maintain a modem fighting unit to repulse invaders There are other reasons too such as formidable entrances to the country through mountain passes where Swiss guns could create havoc and the fact is little but rocks and scenery in many parts of the country Climbing to meant leaving the main rail line at a small town called and boarding a cog railway which inched its way up the side of the mountains under snow sheds and over virtually insur mountable rocks It was one of those crisp days about SO degrees and the sun shone strongly as we stepped out at to be greeted by the thundering roar of artillery practicuiR in mountain fastnesses Echoes from the big guns travelled through the spectacular mountain peaks covered with snow and honeycombed with tunnels for cars and trains Chalettype houses line the narrow streets all paved and scrupulously clean despite their use by the cows who when the whim hits them swing out on the road and leisurely stroll from one pasture to another Every cow has a bell You can Imagine the symphony of sound when all the creatures decide to move at once Traffic on the streets which also was part of a high way Just had to fall in behind the cattle who occasionally snoop into roadside cans or peer Into open doorways We laughed delighted that the urgent march of civilization could be stopped by Swiss cattle with no pretensions to speed but one beer truck driver annoyed at the delay nudged one of the cows with the front of his truck The cow jumped and the rest of the herd cleared out of the way The exhilarating atmosphere in the mountains is a tonic to one accustomed to less sparkling air We met one party of Swiss university students returning from a tavouac In the trails through the snowen shrouded peaks They sparkled with vitality that kept them warm In the cold although they wore only opennecked shirts and sweaters Meanwhile we shivered In sweaters and coats They couldnt keep their high spirits to themselves The first trip to the washroom started a yodelling contest that led into a rousing sing song when they boarded the train for and then to Zurich They must ha ve sung every Swiss song in the books harmonizing and not the least bit selfconscious lie Perry couldnt take it any longer A musiclover he barged into their half of the car lined them up and took their picture engaging an exchange student from the In conversation Charlie and Grace had hist returned from a trip to the higher peaks taking one of those cable cars that go straight up through the clouds and then drop you in a land of enjoyed lunch at a restaurant up eight or ten thousand feet my wife and I In a downtown hotel that overlooked the mountains While we waited the waitress suggested we should sample vintage wines from the hotel cellar Disappointed at not being able to reach the peaks we decided one glass would show we were not abusing Swiss hospitality Now I know what St Paul meant when be told one of his congregations to take a little wine now and then for your stomachs sake and to cure infirmities However Paul could not have considered this prescription for those unaccustomed to heights The wine was dizzier than a bat in broad daylight Consequently my memories of and the Swiss are colored by the bouquet from the grapes But then again you could say I reached pretty dizzy heights without benefit of cable cars and all that trouble Should we execute murderers We have listened with Interest to both sides of the capital punishment debate precipitated by the upcoming expiration of the temporary suspension of the capital punishment bUL Those who oppose capital punish ment want the temporary suspension to be permanent abolition Those who support death by hanging and other means want capital punishment reintroduced Both sides to the question are convinced God Is on their side Capital punishment is neither a deterrent to criminals nor a protection to society It may Indeed backfire by lessening our reverence for life a statement issued by United Church officials declares In support of the arguments of ficials say that murders in United States cities have Increased in spite of the death penalty Georgia Alabama and South Carolina states which electrocute murderers have the highest murder rates in the S Iowa Minnesota and Wisconsin without the death penalty have the lowest Although lh statement does not qualify fads with the observation that the former states are In the hot belt while the latter have more temperate climate factors which could also influence the Incidence of murder It Is on firmer ground when It declares only a small number of murders are planned More than twothirds of murders happen during compulsive rages In quarrels with close associates It says Again it is a matter of degrees it has always been our under standing only those who murdered were executed Long prison sentences were the lot of those who murdered by impulse Asked also From which killers should our laws protect us by their deaths A bank robber who kills may be hanged A drunken driver who kills may not There is an oversimplification of course Bank robbers obviously carry weapons to use Drunken drivers who kill far more people than bank rob bers do not drive cars to kill Church officials speak out forcefully when they say the death penalty is contrary to the spirit and teachings of Christ Although the epistles or gospels do not carry any instances of which we are aware where Christ comdemns capital punishment as such He did say that men should leave vengenancc to God On the other hand those who ad vocate the relmposition of capital punishment point with long fingers at the rising tide of murders which have occurred in Canada since executions were abolished Is it coincidence that murders increased when executions went out of style We doubt it We believe the minority of murderers who plan deeds increase with thoughts of light punish ment However we think the question should be decided by an impartial investigation into the deterrent effects of capital punishment We dont like the idea of revenge as expounded by those who advocate vengeance If it is found capital punishment does have a deterring effect the state had a and a duty to by execution If it is found otherwise then let us abolish the distasteful business for Editorial Pagr Acton Free Press Wednesday November FIFTEEN YEARS hence some of the novices sampling their first taste of hockey school at the Acton Community Centre may be big league players but as of now they look for any visible means of support such as a chair or a kind word from spectators One lad in the middle asks a Divine guidance while two others seek refuge in the net The fellow below just a little overawed seeks further instruction before venturing over the blue line J Jennings Photo MiniComment Most councils in the district have registered objections to the proposed two phase Bell Telephone rate increase but we note by committee minutes that the administration committee of Acton Council decided to take no action Does Council approve of the increase Three cheers and a loud Tiger for the Chamber of Commerce and in setting up a costly Christ mas lighting program for the business section The main streets are the show windows of any community and reflect credit or dismay whatever the case may be in the town at large THE ACTON FREE PRESS PHONE 2010 Business and Editorial The proper name of Bower Ave is really Bower St but we continue to refer to it as Bower Avenue because this is the name most people in town would identify with the Bower It is the same situation with the School Creek Acton Council once endorsed the resolution by former Reeve Bert Hinton to call the stream Hendersons Creek after a well known pioneer family but most people still refer to it as the School Creek Hendersons Creek would confuse them We were asked why the Free Press did not take a strong stand either fir or against the question on the liquor plebiscite The answer is of course that we feel the electorate is knowledgeable enough about the issues to decide for themselves whether they thought booze should be sold in cocktail lounges and dining rooms Liquor is already being sold in several places in town under special occasion permits and only those who belong to the club or organization involved can imbibe It Is only fair we suppose that the general public should have the same opportunity We commend the recent decision of Acton Parks Board to go ahead with construction of three outdoor rinks in Acton at Prospect Park Sir Donald Mann Park am the high school Close attention should also be paid to a no pucks policy during certain hours as board member Diane Spfelvogel has suggested in order to give the children the chance to skate as well as play shinny Yep the squirrels after about five years of exile have managed to chew their way back Into the attic and are happily holding their regular family quarrels wakes wed dings bowling games and footraces right overhead There probably arent more than three or four hundred of them to judge from the commotion And Im helpless Once they get In you might as well wait until spring when they emerge and you can whnek up some tin patches over their entries I like to have black squirrels around the place but not in the place Theyre cute and hopping about on the lawn up acorns in their dainty mitts and swivelling their little bright beady eyes about as they chew But when you cant see them and all you can do Is hear theyre not so cute The only picture of them I have In winter is of a couple of young buck squirrels gnawing away on the insulation covering my wiring and chatting Hey Jack this is better than that hole in the oak we lived In last winter Right Right George It was crowded with the of us And no central heating except our own And down to an acorn a day by February This is great Lots of room for jogging to keep In shape Lots of heat And I love that electricians tape They remind me of a rat who took over in our room in prison camp barracks in the winter of 4445 One single lousy rat had 18 grown men in a state of nightly alarms and excursions At first hed wake somebody up with his gnawing It was a cross between the sound of a chain saw and that of a snowmobile Bill Smiley It was a welcome diversion in the beginning Sort of company as though somebody cared We named him and talked about him rather fondly For a while But then the nerves started to wear thin Theres something nervewracking about a huge rat chomping away right in your car as it seemed It got to the point where nobody could go to sleep Wed lie there nerves strumming waiting for evening performance to begin each of us clutching a weapon a boot or a bed board The little devil seemed to know that he had us right where he wanted us One night hed start right after lightsout and sud denly stop just when we thought wed located him Next night hed lie there chuckling and wed have sworn we could hear the chuckle keeping us in suspense until it was almost unbearable Then hed give a couple of And stop in a few minutes hed start again gnawing steadily and contemptuously At last somebodys nerves would break thered be the flare of a match and 16 of us would leap out of our bunks flailing at the spot we were sure he was In He never was and its a wonder some body wasnt killed in the confusion Because we ali had a different spot Well thats enough about squirrels and rats But I know exactly why people use the term squirrclly as a synonym for being a bit mental other manifestation of winter mentioned was our cat In summer shes lean and tawny a tigress prowling her domain stalking bumblebees and butter flies and birds And shes outside day and night A lovely eat As soon as the first wind comes out of the north she turns into Mr Hyde She hangs on the screen door howling pitiably She has ruined three screen doors Does she want love affection ad miration No And once in she wants grub I have never kicked an animal but when that pig of a cat lurches In like a hyena scenting a fresh kill and starts rub bing against my legs when Im trying to rattle up some for myself theres a grave temptation to turf her right into the kitchen sink Shes an unlovely cat Fat and demanding like some wives And she thinks I m her husband Apparently my affair with cats has been mentioned before because I have here a letter to the lis towel Banner from Rita 11 I quote parts Cats arc very useful in many different than putting hem on a calendar They provide lots of company for old and lonely people who cannot have dogs because they can give them the right exercise pamper and pet their cats because they enjoy it I think this is far from turning them Into moated contemptuous parasites as Mr said They look so sweet when they When they rub your legs I think they are trying to show love Our cats always tried to show love I used to have one but now Im getting one next spring Back Issues of The Free Press 20 years ago Actons town hall tower toppled this week piece by piece as Ajax workmen removed the 70yearold Umbers from the nowwobbly steeple Repairs were found necessary when condition of the town hall bell for fire alarms was investigated The loweralsohousestheelectrlcfiresiren The erection of the town hall and lockup was quite an Important addition to the thriving town of 1881 But it met with storms of dis approval and controversy Major William Allan proposed a hall and a good one on a central site on the front street He would have it constructed with stores on the first floor main hall on the second floor with soaety halls on the third floor and council chambers and lockup in the basement Others opinions varied however and the end result is as it stands today Council plans to cap the tower sheltering the bell and siren tut the pointed steeple will not be replaced Acton has a fine Christmas tree in front of the post of ice Doug Manning sparked the effort and merchants and industries co operated Harold Wiles was the winner of an out board motor boat and motor at the Firemens dance Friday in the town hall Ive been buying tickets for years Mr Wiles commented Linda won the prize and Hepburn of Rockwood the Fire Chief Fred introduced the draw Music was to the Modernaires from Georgetown George Bentons Meat Market opens next Monday in the old stand at the comer of Mill and Elgin St 50 years ago Taken from the issue of the Free Press of Thursday Dec ember 1922 The municipal elections on Monday under the new system of an earlier date resulted in the reelection of the four councillors who were in office last year- Harrison Holmes Bell and Thetford It is very manifest that the citizens of Acton arc seized of the desirability of securing new industries In addition to the excellent ones already operating here At the election the bylaw to guarantee the bonds of Thomson Motor of Toronto to the amount of 10000 a favourable vote was cast of four to one for the new enterprise Mr Roy Thomson of Toronto was in town for the vote and assured all those who met him that the Thomson Company will do all In their power to make the enterprise ad vantageous to Acton A bold attempt was made to accomplish a jail delivery at the county jail Milton Monday morning when friends of the convicted pickpockets sentenced to three and a half years in Kingston Penitentiary endeavored to liberate them When the turn key was aroused they made their escape in an automobile Three hours later the Milton Fair pickpockets were on their way to Kingston A member of the new provincial Constable staff has been allotted to county and will enter upon his duties here this week His headquarters will be at Milton Cons A Riepert is the new of ficer He is a stalwart wellinformed man and will no doubt make himself of much value in the preservation of the peace in the county years ago Taken from the banc of the Free Press of Thursday December HOT Three months ago Thomas Brunt was taken seriously ill and since has been under the doctors care The other day his kind- hearted fellowworkmen at the Acton Tanning Co circulated a subscription and up a purse of a very respectable amount Their employers hearing of this kind action supplemented the amount by a good donation Practical sympathy of this kind is Christlike and highly commendable The G TR have just Issued a new tariff of passenger rates from all points in Canada to points in Alaska and British Columbia for the benefit of those who are intending to seek their fortunes in the gold fields The route is by way of Chicago thence to Seattle and Tacoma and then by the vessels of the Pacific Coast Steamship Company The rates from Toronto range from for first class on the Dyea to for second class on the Wrangel The amount of allowed is 150 pounds Those who stood at the head of their classes in the roll of honor Include Ruby Clark Ettie McDonald Myrtle Matthews Myrtle Dills Charlie Matthews David Harold Edith Nicklln Bertie Speight Ethel Coleman A number of new books were put Into circulation at the Rockwood public library this week The committee is becoming noted for their excellent taste in choosing books During Dr Mercers absence Dr Harris will have charge of his dental practice and will call at bis office over Browns Drug Store on the second and third Thursdays of each month